He made 400+ runs in IPL 2025.
India’s star batter Abhishek Sharma made headlines when he climbed to the top of the ICC Men’s T20I rankings for batters. He ended Australia opener Travis Head’s year-long reign at the top. The 24-year-old batter has collected 829 rating points, while Head is in the second spot with 814 points. He is now only the third Indian, after Virat Kohli and Suryakumar Yadav, to climb to the top of the ICC T20I rankings.
Happiness came in abundance for Abhishek’s family when they got to know that the left-hander is now the No.1 batter. His father, Raj Kumar Sharma, spoke to CricXtasy in an exclusive conversation where he opened up about his son’s journey on how he became the best batter.
“I am elated and really grateful for all the love and blessings that you guys have been showering on Abhishek. By God’s grace, it all happened. We are very proud of Abhishek after he achieved this feat. Everyone who plays for the country dreams about getting into that ranking list, and I am glad Abhishek finally managed to reach there. I also think that it’s a proud moment for every player to play for the country, and as far as Abhishek is concerned, I really hope that he will continue his hard work,” he said.
AUSA-W
–
INDA-W
–
BVB
191/4
AMR
152/7
VSS
–
SVL
–
ROR
–
TBW
–
VSS
–
BVB
–
ODW
58/5
CDK
161/8
PD
–
EDR
–
ZGW
71/8
ZAS
129/5
Zagreb Sokol beat Zagreb Warriors by 58 runs
ZAS
134/7
SOS
91/4
Zagreb Sokol beat Sir Oliver Split by 43 runs
ZGW
100/6
RJM
–
ZAS
–
SOS
–
ZGW
–
RJM
–
RJM
–
SOS
–
ZGA
–
RJM
–
SOS
–
ZGA
–
ZGW
–
SOS
–
ZGA
–
RJM
–
YOR
–
LAN
136/3
DURH
–
MID
–
LEI
–
NOT
–
BB
–
KENT
–
WOR
–
HAM
–
SURR
–
GLAM
–
GTC
142/4
CCC
138/5
Gauhati Town Club beat City Cricket Club by 6 wickets
BCC
123/10
NAJC
124/5
Nabajyoti Club beat Bud Cricket Club by 5 wickets
BCC
–
GUG
–
LLG
–
MUR
–
NK
–
NWW
–
BNC
–
KZK
–
TCC
–
KUMS
–
JJ
–
SBSCC
–
NCMI
–
BCC
–
KLPR
101/1
JOR
100/10
Kuala Lumpur beat Johor by 9 wickets
PRK
106/5
SEL
101/10
Perak beat Selangor by 5 wickets
HBT
216/4
SML
4/0
MYW
–
GBM
–
BNB
–
HBT
–
MGD
–
SML
–
WI
–
PAK
–
SLBL
–
SLGY
–
AUS
165/10
SA
218/7
South Africa beat Australia by 53 runs
BIP
–
OVI
–
SOB
–
NOS
–
WEF
–
MAO
–
BIP-W
–
OIW-W
–
SBW-W
–
NOS-W
–
WFW-W
–
MOW-W
–
The soon-to-turn 25-year-old has often struck many centuries in various leagues of the sport. However, fame hasn’t always followed Abhishek, as pointed out by his father.
“In the practice matches and club games, Abhishek has smashed centuries in like just 6-7 overs. Not just once, a lot of times, he has done that. I still remember he was taking part in the DY Patil tournament in Mumbai. In one of the matches, he scored an unbeaten 203 runs, and still none of the newspapers mentioned him,” Abhishek’s father shared.
It was back in July 2024 when Abhishek made his T20I debut for India. While playing his second game, he scored his maiden T20I century (100 runs off 46 balls) against Zimbabwe. In the T20I series against England, the Punjab-based batter amassed 135 runs off 54 balls, which is the highest individual score by an Indian in T20Is.
“I want to tell you something: Abhishek has always been an aggressive batter. No matter what the format is, he plays aggressively. He is a three-format player. I have been coaching him since the very beginning, and I believe he can play any format. He grew up playing the red ball format. You look at his performance in U-14, U-16 16 and U-19, he has played a lot of cricket with the red ball and has aced it,” Abhishek’s father said.
ALSO READ:
Apart from his batting, Abhishek is a very handy left-arm spinner. He has scalped six wickets in a total of 17 T20Is. He has taken close to 60 wickets in his domestic career so far. While taking part in the 2016 U19 Asia Cup, he was the highest wicket-taker in the tournament. In the final of the U19 Asia Cup, Abhishek picked up four wickets for 37 runs.
“Abhishek works really hard when it comes to his bowling. He is very underrated as a bowler. Since I was also a left-arm spinner, I have given a lot of tips to him. He has taken a lot of wickets in the domestic circuit, U14, U16, and U19, and Ranji Trophy as well. Abhishek also had a great outing with the ball in the U19 World Cup. Still, he did not get enough chances with the ball. He was one of the best all-rounders during the U19 Asia Cup. You go and check his stats, it’s mind-boggling,” he added.
Former India cricketer Yuvraj Singh has played a vital role in shaping Abhishek’s career. A lot of videos have gone viral on social media where the former player was training the youngster.
“Yuvraj Singh has played a very crucial role in Abhishek’s career. He is the one who is responsible for all the hard work put in by Abhishek. He has allowed a few members from his team who take care of Abhishek’s practice. Be it training in the gym, batting in the nets, or recovery sessions, all of it has been taken care of by Yuvraj Singh. In fact, the kind of player Abhishek has become now, full credit goes to Yuvraj Singh,” Raj Kumar expressed.
A lot of people often wonder how Abhishek generates so much power in his batting. The left-hand batter has been known for hitting big sixes. He can tonk any bowler out of the park as per his will.
“Ever since Abhishek started playing cricket, he has always batted like this. He used to hit long, long sixes in the nets when he was growing up. No matter what the length and line of the ball, he can hit you in the stands effortlessly. Abhishek has always idolised Yuvraj Singh and has grown up watching him bat. His bat flow has been flawless ever since his childhood days. He scored 1,200 runs in the Vijay Merchant Trophy, U-16 age group tournament. If a bowler is bowling some good deliveries, usually a batter would come and defend, but Abhishek’s mindset was different. He used to hit them out of the park even on their certain unplayable deliveries. Sometimes, I used to go to him and say, So, it was a good ball, you would have defended it. Then he used to reply to me by saying, Dad, if I can hit it out of the park, then why should I defend?” he told CricXtasy.
Abhishek plays for Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in the Indian Premier League. During the IPL 2025, SRH had a tough run on the field as they failed to qualify for the playoffs, finishing in sixth spot on the points table.
“See, Sunrisers Hyderabad has some very good players, and they have a world-class team. It’s unfortunate, they had to go through a tough time in the IPL 2025. Abhishek was also under pressure, and it was quite evident. You see them in the next IPL, they will come all guns blazing. Despite all the failures, SRH has always backed Abhishek to play his natural game, and that’s what he did in that game. He trusted his instincts, and the rest is history,” Abhishek’s father shared.
However, Abhishek batted well and ended the season with 439 runs. He also slammed 141 runs against the Punjab Kings in just 40 balls.
Australia’s skipper Pat Cummins led SRH to the IPL 2024 Final. But they lost to the Kolkata Knight Riders. Cummins has seen Abhishek from close quarters as they both play for the same team in the IPL.
“One day, Pat Cummins came to me and said that I don’t want to bowl to Abhishek in the nets as he used to hit me very hard. Cummins said that I was scared of him in the nets. He even said that if Abhishek were there in Australia, he would have played all the formats by now,” Abhishek’s father revealed.
SRH has a lethal opening pair in the form of Abhishek and Travis Head. The duo has batted together in a total of 16 innings so far and piled up 736 runs, which is the second most by a pair since IPL 2024.
“Even Travis Head told me that if Abhishek had played cricket for Australia, we both would have broken many world records together. Travis also added that, whenever I bat with Abhishek, I get so happy seeing him hit the ball like this from the non-striker’s end. I am a huge fan of Abhishek’s batting. India is very lucky to have a player like Abhishek Sharma,” he said.
Former Sri Lankan spinner, Muttiah Muralitharan, who has been working with Sunrisers Hyderabad as spin bowling coach, spoke highly about Abhishek.
“One day, Muttiah Muralitharan came to me and said that Abhishek has the talent to play all the formats of the game. He said that when I used to play cricket, most of the left-hand batters struggled to play against me. But whenever I bowl Abhishek in nets, he is damn good against me,” his father said.
Both Abhishek and Shubman Gill come from Punjab, and they have played a lot of cricket together since their childhood. They have forged many memorable partnerships on the field for Punjab.
“Both Abhishek and Shubman have played a lot of cricket together ever since their childhood. They are best friends also, and I have seen Shubman and his father slogging. Shubman Gill is a very talented cricketer. I have seen both of them bailing out Punjab a lot of times from tough situations. They have won many matches for Punjab while playing together. When they were playing U14 cricket, a lot of people and coaches used to tell me that one day both of them would play for India. Shubman Gill is technically very sound, and it’s a treat to the eyes to watch him bat,” he told CricXtasy.
Even the God of cricket, Sachin Tendulkar, did not shy away from lauding Abhishek. According to him, the left-handed batter can break many records in the future.
“I even spoke to Sachin Tendulkar, and he said Abhishek has been a great talent for India. The kind of bat swing Abhishek has is phenomenal. I really enjoy watching Abhishek bat. He also said that Abhishek will break many records in the future. In the end, Sachin told me that a gem is born in your family,” Abhishek’s father added.
The great Desh Prem Azad, who has given players like Kapil Dev and Chetan Sharma, also lauded Abhishek when he was playing U14 cricket.
“I still remember Desh Prem Azad, who was the coach of legendary Kapil Dev, told me that both Shubman and Abhishek would play for India and would also captain the team. See now, Shubman has already become a captain,” he concluded.
